My Resting HR as of Summer (Aug 2012) is around 49-59 BPM upon waking most mornings according to my portable finger Pulse-Oximeter SM-110. My Polar FT1 HR Monitor reads about 2-3 beats higher. But it’s probably safe to assume that my normal resting HR is an average of 55 beats per minute. It’s probably around 70 BPM while sitting around. Around 80ish while standing. I got it up to 172 BPM today during a 1 minute interval on my Schwinn Airdyne. I could have probably gone 10 beats higher going “all-out” but i was pretty uncormforable at that HR, which should be a good estimate of my current “anaerobic threshold/lactate threshold). According to my age, my estimated “maximum heart rate” is 182/183 (220 – 37/38 years of age) I will now use these numbers to estimate my heart rate zones using the Karvonen Formula. (Using this great website: http://www.briancalkins.com/HeartRate.htm)

My 60% of HRM according to the Karvonen Formula is and average of: 131 (129-133 range = RHR of 50-60 BPM). This is the lower range of HR. Or what i will rest down to but not below during exercise. Below is a list of target HR ranges for an average of my resting heart rate, which i set at around 55 BPM…

RESULTS FROM “QUICK ” SPINE SCAN, using Hand Held Meter-Reader Thingy: (oddly i met the chiropractor Brent Smith a week or 2 earlier at a “Dog Show” at the Palmer Event Center where i was there with some peeps for a craft show. He took a quick FREE scan of my neck with the same hand held divice and it showed that my entire cervical spine was fine EXCEPT the very top vertebrae. It showed that it was either Red or Blue, neither very good. When i had the scan done a week or so later i don’t believe it was there. But i never got a record of the scan. I asked for one but he couldn’t give me one. He told me what they were at the exam at his office. Maybe the spine gets jammed some days and is much better on others. Years ago (probably 10 years or a little less) i went to a fee evaluation at the Zigmont Chiro Clinic on S. Lamar. He did some X-rays and said my cervical spine was very curved. At the time i slept on my stomach each night, with my head always turned…like a homicide chalk-line. I know this was bad form my neck. He also noticed some “scars” on my lungs. Who knows what they were. He asked me if i smoked. I said no. I think the rest of my spine was ok. I think lifestyle choices efffect the appearance of the “every day spine” and probably shift around from week to week.)

*We talked about how proper sleep is crutial to regulating Cortisol. Cortisol and the constant stress that causes to the body, can damage the arteries by leaving the scar tissue/cuts that can build up plaque. Cholesterol isn’t inherently bad (it is actually essential) but “bad food=sugar, bad fats, processed food” can cause cholesterol to collect and harden on the damaged areas of our arteries. We talked about how pressure/restrictions to the spine (over 40lbs) can cause degeneration diseases due to a limited signal path from the brain to those specific corresponding organs. All this due to the position of the vertabrae, and whether or not they are cutting off the signal to some degree. This is, of course, should be avoided and corrected.

5 essentials (Maximized Living List/Approach to Spine Health)

Maximized Mind

Maximized Nerve Supply

Maximized Quality Nutrition

Maximized Oxygen and Lean Muscle

Minimized Toxins

2 Maximized Nerve Supply

Your central nervous system

Our health relies on our central nervous system more than any other system or organ in our bodies.

This intricate system intertwined throughout our bodies is the power supply of life. By maximizing nerve supply, we maximize the power supply of life within our bodies.

This requires specific spinal correction.

The brain is the first organ to develop in the mother’s womb because it is the command center for the rest of our body. It uses our spinal cord and nerves to create all of our cells and organs.

From development until death, this command center is in charge of the flow of power along the spine and through the nervous system, controlling all function and healing within the body.

Maximized nerve supply is needed to attain true wellness.

The nervous system controls millions of cells inside dozens of operating systems all at once. Breathing and blinking happen without conscious thought. And our hearts beat effortlessly because the nervous system instructs it to do so.

While your body may be able to go days without water, weeks without food and even minutes without oxygen, it cannot keep going one second without the power created by your nervous system.

The nervous system is so essential to your body that it is protected within a well-built, bony structure. This bony structure consists of the brain-protecting skull and the spinal column, which shelters the spinal cord and nerve roots. When this spinal column is not well taken care of, it may shift or rotate out of place, interfering with your body’s ability to create maximum nerve supply.

The condition of your spine influences both your physical and mental health—making it essential to optimal performance.

Developments in modern medicine enable chiropractors to accurately measure your spine. This allows them to precisely gauge both the damage done to your spine and nervous system, as well as make recommendations for care.

Your spinal cord and nervous system control all function and healing in your body. It consists of 24 movable bones grouped into spinal units that must remain in alignment. Should these units misalign, they cause pressure on the spinal nerves and spinal cord.

A chiropractor requires specialized training beyond graduation in evaluating these spinal units and curves. This training teaches how the spinal units and curves influence each other, which is necessary to understand how to actually correct the spine, rather than to just simply manipulate it.

Maximized Living doctors are certified in this specialized training.

From the front, your spine should be straight. From either side, it should have three distinct curves to allow for healthy nerve function.

A deviation in spinal alignment is called a subluxation, and it poses a complex problem. The bones that make up your spine—or vertebrae—are attached to muscles and ligaments while they surround and protect your spinal cord and nerves.

When spinal vertebrae misalign, your muscles and ligaments get stretched and potentially damaged. Meanwhile, your spinal cord and nerves are compromised, which can cause pain and enable disease to develop.

Spinal manipulation as the lone treatment is a fine short-term solution, but it’s imperative to address all aspects of your health when correcting subluxation—something not always done by traditional chiropractors.

The goal of certified Maximized Living doctors is to fully remove subluxations while also coaching you on the remaining four health Essentials. This method removes the sources of a health problem, so your pain goes away and never returns.

When the spine is positioned properly and the individual units and curves function normally, you have a tremendous ability to protect your nervous system—your body’s lifeline.

The “Arc of Life”

A major focus of spinal corrective care is the curve of your neck from the side.

There is an overwhelming amount of scientific evidence dating back to the 1960s that proves how critical this cervical curve is to your health and the prevention of degenerative disease.

In 1960, in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, a study found that when the curve in your neck moves forward out of its normal position, your spinal cord experiences up to 40 lbs. of pressure.

A 2006 study done by the Department of Environmental and Occupational Medicine in the Liberty Safe Work Research Centre at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland showed that losing the cervical curve in your neck literally shrinks the circumference of your spinal cord.

A 1998 study in Germany found that the diameter of your spinal cord shrinks as much as 24 percent due to tension and pressure resulting from a lost cervical curve. Stretching, narrowing, and shrinking of the spinal cord causes severe neurological damage.

Researchers in Japan found that when the spine loses its normal curve, it actually flattens the spinal cord and leads to degeneration of spine tissue. Other research in Japan showed that this degeneration was so bad it created demyelination of the spinal cord—as seen in patients with multiple sclerosis.

Through MRIs of the spinal cord and the spinal canal in the neck, German studies found that when you lose the curve, you stretch the spinal cord as much as 15mm (like a rubber band).

On a positive note, a large research study on 100 patients revealed that if you have a normal curve in your neck, you have no chance of spinal stenosis (pathological loss of spinal canal space). However, it also showed that if you’ve had a trauma, there’s a 98 percent chance you will have lost the curve in your neck (and most likely be headed towards stenosis).

Other Science that is Important to Know Related to the Need of Spinal Correction

Abnormal weight bearing placed upon spinal bones will cause you to exhibit abnormal and premature degenerative patterns. This degenerative, aging process can start immediately when bones of the spine are misaligned. Spinal correction prevents the damaging effects of Wolf’s Law from kicking in and a well-trained chiropractor can stop and even reverse this problem if identified early enough.

Motion is the Key to Life and Performance:

Anyone who has ever tried to improve their golf swing, play with their grandkids, or compete for an Olympic medal knows mobility and range of motion are not negotiable facets of health.

Corrective care chiropractors have patients ranging from kids to grandparents and are also on the sidelines of professional and Olympic sports competitions.

The results of a study published in the November/December 2001 issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics showed that cervical range of motion was significantly improved with chiropractic adjustments.

More Critical Facts about Correction:

With proper alignment and normal curves, the spine has a dramatic increase in resistance to injury. In fact, your spine is 26 times more resistant to forces when all the spinal units are properly aligned.

Children fall enough times in a day to hospitalize an adult. A child’s healthy spine can withstand this assault.

As an adult—between stress, poor posture, car accidents, sports trauma, etc.—it’s critical that your spine be able to withstand great amounts of force to ensure health and safety.

5 The truth about toxicity

Maximized Living’s goal is to help you recognize toxins in foods, cleaning products, personal care items and environmental hazards that pose serious risks to your health.

If you choose to ignore these toxins, it will be impossible to avoid the diseases of the new millenium that affect adults and children alike. Today, children are taking record levels of medication to try to combat diseases brought on by exposure to toxicity, yet the very medications they take increase their toxicity.

Toxins are everywhere: synthetic cleaning chemicals, food additives, preservatives, medications and even in unfiltered water. Our bodies naturally battles to remove them, but overexposure takes its toll. By minimizing our consumption of toxins, we can keep our bodies free of the poisons that produce symptoms like headaches, weight gain, autoimmune diseases and depression.

Toxicity is a real, tangible danger that cannot continue to be swept under the rug.

Between everyday household cleaning products, poor HVAC systems, consumption of known carcinogens (such as cigarettes) and industries that use coal-fired plants, our environment is a loaded toxic gun. Our bodies are the target.

Toxins wreak havoc on our bodies and also cause disease and suffering. Even if we choose to eat organically, toxins still lurk everywhere.

A quality detoxification system is our best defense against the arsenal of toxins in our environment. A complete detoxification system will do two things:

Elevate your body’s level of glutathione to escort toxins out of the cells.

Permanently bind the fat-soluble toxins and remove them from the body.

Recognizing toxicity around you

Consumers are constantly bombarded with commercials and brochures describing the wonders of modern medicine. But the real wonder is why consumers rarely question the toxic chemicals in the drugs they willingly put into their bodies. The laundry list of side effects is a sign that even medical treatments can be toxic.

Few people recognize that health has an inverse relationship to the number of medications you’re on. In most cases, the number of prescriptions someone takes increases as they get older, which means their bodies are requiring more help to survive. The increase of medications also indicates the decline of health in America.

Resource recommendation

CellDetox™ contains powerful ingredients that work to raise a natural compound called glutathione that helps your body remove toxins from the body at a cellular level. BodyDetox™ binds and collects the toxins released by your body and safely and permanently removes them.

Together with optimal nutrition and exercise, these elements are designed to enhance your body’s natural detoxificiation system and permanently remove toxins from your body.

3 Full Body Strength Routines a week. Do intervals on off days when possible to help with recovery.Finding a way to blend and improve Strength/Hypertrophy/Gymnastics Skills/Endurance.

Heavy/Medium/Light days always sound nice on paper but the reality is that “life” happens. I think it best to shoot for specified days but most importantly listen to my body. For Example, if i feel a “heavy” day on a lighter day, then go “heavy”. This theme should be applied to all days, even as far as completely taking a day off from training if needed.

A great option is do one “HEAVY” movement each session, Hypertrophy the rest. Also adding one “dynamic effort” exercise each session is a great addition.

Another great option is Jason Ferrugia’s 3 day full body plan(Conjugate Periodization Method)…Max Effort Day/Dynamic Effort Day (Plyo/Med Ball/Fast reps/Quick lifts) or Repeated Effort Day(hypertrophy work)/Modified-Repeated Effort Day(keep 1-2 reps in the bank day, including Strongman Training). This could also be modifed so that the Heavy Day is one day, Medium (hypertrophy or “conservative” load Strongman Work on another, Ply0/Med Ball/Lighter Quick Lifts that last day as a “Lighter” day.

Full body each strength session. Alternate Hip/Knee…Hor/Vert PUSH…Hor/Vert PULL…corrective exercises….stretches. If needed for recovery purposes, switch to Push/Pull days every other session…keeping it still full body each time.

Last month i did a week or so of 3 days Upper Body/3 days Lower Body Split. All days consecutively. Done for quick Hypertrophy (combined with an increase in protein uptake and overall calories. It seemed to work ok.

* Yoga Lunge with Arm Raise over head with opposite arm…stretching and breathing the Thoracic Spine into better mobility.

* Inversation Table – Lay Upside down when i have time (massage Psoas & Illium and anything else i can find while upside down)

* Trigger Points in Adductors, Hip Flexor, Neck Muscles, etc

August 2012

*I am re-reading Gray Cook’s first book, “Athletic Body in Balance” and an article he wrote for his Balanced Body series called, “Static Stretching”. Re-read later to see highlighted points to remember. Today i finally feel i am getting a better understanding of corrective exercise and the re-setting of quality movement patterns.

Basically my FMS Deep Squat and Shoulder Mobility Reach both suck. Probably both bad 2s at best, but honestly probably both 1s. I might even have a legitimate asymmetry with my right shoulder/thoracic region. I can squat low but my back rounds, arms fall beyond the feet, my feet then turn out. Time to work it out…

First things first, breathing. I am focusing on breathing complete diaphram breaths in hope that my thoracic spine and scapula will work better together, in rhythm. I know my shoulder capsules are on the tight side. I am working on stretches to help this, (mainly the sleeper stretch + ball for any trigger points, stick and foam roll lats, pecs and teres major region, stretch all this as well, pull-parts, dislocate-stretches some, getup focus, handstands, T-Spine mobs, etc)

Deep Squat – I am using the 2×4 under the heals(feet Straight Ahead, shoulder-width apart-knees to the outside- focusing on keeping feet straight ahead), while pressing firmly into my 9lb, from the standing position all the way down to the bottom. black leather med ball, then reaching SLOWLY 8/4/8 overhead with each arm, one at a time. I am also pulling myself into the deep squat, using the hip-flexors, by rapping a Iron-Woody Green band through the gymnastic rings and pulling downward. I then do the deep squat stretch (holding onto the pole) to see if the bottom position is any easier to maintain without assistance. The focus is on coordination, especially with the core and hips as a team. I am using spider man stretches, as well as 90/90 HipFlexor/Psoas stretches (w arm reach) and hip external rotation stretches to help with further opening of the hips. Add half-kneeling “lifts” (Chops & Lifts) seems to help with my lack of proper right-hip/knee stabilization, control. Also stretching ankles (dorsiflexion).

Summary: Better Diaphram Expansion, Better T-spine Mobility, Better Mobility/Flexibility in Shoulders(especially right side), Better Mobility/Flexibility in Hips(especially right hip), Better flexibility in Calves (dorsiflexion), Better contact/tissue quality of Feet, Better overall Coordination in DEEP SQUAT pattern… i a baby leaning how to walk again. I must also learn to breath PROPERLY throughout ALL movments, especially the bottom position of the Deep Squat…and especially while doing the bottom overhead reaches of the Correctives! 🙂

all this and i haven’t even gotten to the other stuff… haha. Honestly, i think the Deep Squat and Shoulder Mobility on the FMS Screen are my two worst. Both about equally sh*tty.

* i am also trying to do 1-2 sets of 15-50 reps daily (or joint specific on workout days at end of workout as “cool down”…Ex: Legs = Knee & Hip Integrity Work) of “joint integrity” work. Slow eccentrics, pause isometric, focused faster concentrics. Knees (Hack Squats or Plies with calf raise at top) & Hips(Floor Bridges…both hands on Diaphram, focus on strong inhale on rise and exhale on fall, all the while keeping braced. elevate legs with lift and toes off the ground), Elbows (dips) & Shoulders (? )…. i am finding that doing a 3sets x 15reps of a superset of 2 upper/lower “joint integrity work” works well. i like the calf-raised hack-squat/tricep pushup to up dog(calf stretch) to be a nice combination.

Constantly retest FMS on myself.

At the end of every workout, stand on right leg…with proper stabilization and allignment (perfectly forward and locked out at hip with CONTROL) Repeat 3-5 reps of 30 second holds. As of 8/20/12 i was able to hold straight and tight for the first time in a long time. I am thankful.